Ancient document rule

{
  "id": "MLC-T-LAW-000504",
  "term": "Ancient document rule",
  "field": "Law",
  "definition": "An evidence rule under which a document at least 20 years old is treated as authentic if it looks free of suspicion and comes from a place where such a document would likely be kept, so no witness to its signing is needed. Federal Rule 901(b)(8) sets this authentication standard, and Rule 803(16) separately exempts statements in such documents from the hearsay rule, now only for documents prepared before 1998.",
  "url": "https://mlchart.com/terminology/law/ancient-document-rule/"
}